A/N: Please shoot me... Regarding spoilers, anyone who´s been to Pendrago once should be safe enough to read this. Really, I don´t think there´s anything in here that could serve as a spoiler. I hope you enjoy reading!

Rating: K+

Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Zestiria or any of its characters. Tales of Zestiria belongs to Bandai Namco. All I own is the story as you see it written below.

The Reason Why

They had been travelling across the Pearloats Pasture for the better part of the day and the sun was slowly crawling towards the horizon, but whichever way they turned, the scenery hadn´t changed much. The group had passed countless wheat fields, walked up hills and treaded over fields of green grass, fighting hellions on occasion. But, although the Pasture was vast, it offered little shelter from the night winds or rain, so their quest of finding a place to camp any time soon got more and more difficult the further the day progressed. With no other choice, they would have to continue their marsh until they found somewhere proper to rest for the night.

Wandering for another hour, the blue of the day sky gradually turning deeper shades, Sorey and the others came across a pair of merchants transporting their goods on a wagon. Or at least that was what they tried to accomplish, had they not gotten stuck in a slope on the side of the road. Taking a closer look at it, Sorey and Rose offered to give them a hand and with some added effort, they were able to lift it back onto track. Gratefull for the help, the merchants asked them where they were headed and after Sorey explained their predicament, the merchants told them about a small traveler´s inn that was supposed to be a little ways ahead and offered to take them there on their wagon. At the prospect of getting to rest their weary feet and bones, they happily accepted.

And so it happened that Sorey and Rose found themselves sitting in between cargo bags and crates of boxes, enjoying the slow but restfull ride. "I´m sorry it´s so cramed back there but we received a pretty large order the other day. I hope there´s enough space for you two to sit somewhat comfortable", Maggy called to them after they had finished introducing themselves. She sat in the front next to her partner, Leif, who was charged with maneuvring the horses.

"Oh please, don´t worry! This is plenty", Rose chirped, more than satisfied to finally not be walking anymore. "Thank you for letting us hitch a ride in the first place."

Laughing, Maggy waved a hand at the younger girl. "Don´t mention it. If it weren´t for you two we´d probably still be stuck in that slope!" In a much gruffer voice but playfull all the same, she added: "Thanks to a certain someone here."

At that Leif turned to her with a grumpy expression. "Hey! Is it my fault the road´s in such bad shape? I´m not in charge of Rolance´s maintenance work I´ll have you know!"

Giggling in return at their antics, Rose leaned back against the bag behind her and stretched her arms leisurly as she let the two fellow merchants alone with their bickering. She yawned heartedly. "Guess Rolance´s lack of street work was right in our favour this time."

"And just at the right time, too!", Sorey nodded backing into the box behind him. "...Though I feel kinda bad for admitting that", he added in a smaller voice.

"Ever the gentle Shepherd", Rose sighed flatly.

"That´s the naive Shepherd for you, alright", Edna stated inside Sorey´s head, which earned her a high pitched shriek and an angry retard from the red haired Squire.

"Uuuh, I told you not to do that anymore!"

"I think it would spare you a lot of trouble if you just got used to it", Mikleo offered, appearing next to Sorey while he said so as to not scare her even more. Following his example, Lailah´s form materialized beside her a moment later.

"That would certainly be most opportune", she agreed, but the small, forced looking grin on her face said it was something far easier said than done. Mikleo didn´t doubt that for a second.

"Can it!", Rose yelled angrily. "What´s wrong with being scared of bodyless voices in your head?! Also it´s getting way too crowded in here", she said and crouched back to make some space for the two seraphim to sit, anyways.

For someone who´s always so straight forward she sure is contradicting her words a lot, Mikleo thought with a smile, thinking it wiser not to mention that.

"You sure are contradicting sometimes", Sorey commented a heartbeat later. Well, there went that theory.

Just as expected, it didn´t make Rose happy. "Like you´re one to talk", she fumed. Continuing their arguement for a while longer, it soon died down as the conversation started being filled with more yawning than actual words. "I think this whole voices-in-my-head business got me more worn out than walking and fighting hellions all day..."

"For that you were arguing pretty energetically", Sorey teased, before a yawn escaped him as well.

Rose crossed her arms in front of her chest and flopped back. "I was making a point, there´s nothing to argue about!"

Lailah laughed. "And quiiiite a point", she said, imitating the red head´s manner of yawning half-way through.

Rose couldn´t help but break into a grin. "Whatever, this is it for me. I´m taking a nap until we get to that inn." And with that, she closed her eyes and dozed off.

Sorey laughed warily at that. "That sure was fast..."

"Well, it does remind me of someone", Mikleo commented not bothering to hide his grin.

"Looked in a mirror recently?", Sorey countered, rasining an eyebrow.

"Checked that logic of yours recently?"

"Like–"

But before either of them could continue, Edna´s voice echoed in Sorey´s head, sounding profoundly annoyed. "If you two are the next to start an argument I will send the ground beneath us rumbling and trembling until it´s cured you both of your stupidity. Rest. Sleep. NOW."

And without further ado, both of them were quiet.

"Edna-san..." Grinning sympathatically at the two boys, Lailah couldn´t help but laugh weakly. She cleared her throat. "I don´t quite agree with the wording", she said, "but it is a good idea. Why don´t we all rest up while we have the chance?"

"...Guess sleep does sound like a good plan." Obviously deciding not to argue and risk being at the mercy of Edna´s wrath, the brown haired youth sat back silently, resting his back against one of the larger wooden boxes. Either that, or he was just genuinly tired from the way he less leaned but slumped against the crate. Mikleo almost laughed at that.

"What about you, Mikleo-san?", Lailah asked as she noticed he was still outside. It wasn´t necesarrily that he had to return into Sorey´s body to rest but he and the other seraphim had made a habit of it since it was the way that put the least burden on him. At night they´d all stay outside to sleep, anyways, although seeing as space was something of an issue at the moment, the latter was probably not very ideal.

"I think I´ll stay outside just a little bit longer", he aswered regardless. A little longer wouldn´t make the difference. When he saw the critique in her eyes, very possibly fearing the two boys would start another argument after all, he motioned for her to look to his side. Following his gaze, Lailah looked relieved as she found Sorey with his eyes closed and fast asleep.

When her mind was put at ease at last, she gave a long yawn herself. Not having to worry about being toppled out of the wagon during one´s sleep took the edge off, after all. "Alright. If something comes up, do not hesitate to wake us", she said, lowering the sleeve she used to cover her yawn with. Lailah´s form desintegrated into a small ball of light, floating back into Sorey´s body.

And with that, he was left alone.

Relaxing against the boxes behind them, he looked outside the wagon and watched the scenery go by. It had been some time since they´d passed through anywhere this peacfully, not to mention that since they usually had to walk everywhere, merely sitting here and getting to observe the shining green grass sway in the winds and still progress onwards, Mikleo thought it was a moment he should enjoy while he could. The water seraph grinned when he thought of how Sorey would agrue that he and Rose were actually the only ones who had no other choice but to walk since everyone else could simply seek refuge in him if they got tired of it. Well, that is true, Mikleo mused, grin broadening. Though Mikleo didn´t think Sorey even really minded that. Long as they didn´t rub it in his face every opportuninty they got.

After some time his gaze drifted upward to watch the blue sky above, nostalgia washing over him for a moment. Its blue was radiant with barely a cloud to be seen. Much like in Elysia. It was in moments like this in which Mikleo realized just how much it reminded him of home. Often a time, when they took a break on the road or stopped somewhere for the night, Mikleo would sit there and look up into it, becoming lost to his thoughts and the world around him. It was strange, but even so far away from the village they grew up in, so far that it almost seemed like another world completely, the sky was still shining in the same bright blue on a sunny day, the same bright stars glowed down on them at night and became covered by the same cold grey when it rained. Looking up into it, even if only for a moment, it felt to Mikleo like he and Sorey were still home and never left, exploring ruins and managing their daily lives together with their family. As if nothing at all had changed.

And yet, so much had changed.

There was no denying that ever since he and Sorey embarked on their journey, things had gotten... a little out of hand. They had set foot into the world outside Gramps´ domain and with that into a world where most people couldn´t see or hear seraphim, something they were so used to being a given, despite being the told the opposite numerous times. But after travelling for this long, they had come to know it as a world filled with people as colourfull in character, personallity and desires as the seasons, mysteries that had yet to be unravelled and with a lot of its history yet unknown, even to the two of them. Mikleo didn´t think it was too much to call it a world of tales both tragic and wonderous. And somehow they had ended up in the fight deciding its very future. He sighed at that, shooting a glance at the certain someone responsible– alright, mostly responsible to be fair. So looking up into a sky that looked the same no matter where their travels turned them, was somehow reassuring. To him it was like a reminder that, however dark and uncertain the way before them, somewhere it was still light. And that there were some things that never changed, no matter the circumstances.

Like this guy always mumbling in his sleep, Mikleo thought with a sigh when he heard Sorey´s voice sound next to him. More than the sky or the ever reoccuring seasons, Mikleo thought it was Sorey who changed even less. Be it his love for ruins or his inability to tell a lie even if it were to save his life, his childhood friend had kept to all those quirks and notions he–

Mikleo frowned. Well, the way he tended to mumble stuff in his sleep that not even he could tell what it was supposed to mean, how he got lost in his thoughts whenever he came up against a wall, the ferventy with which he believed in their dream of finding a way together for humans and seraphim to live alongside each other, all that hadn´t changed one bit. And his thickheadedness still stood unrivaled. A light laugh escaped Mikleo. Well, maybe not so unrivaled anymore. He was pretty sure Rose came in at least close second to his childhood friend.

"Like you´re any better!" ...and he was pretty sure that would be Sorey´s answer if he ever were to tell him how he thought about it. The seraph couldn´t help but laugh again. No matter how chaotic and weird things had gotten, he could at least say it was never dull. Even if he had to admit their lives had changed a lot in this short amount of time, Mikleo was glad he was able to say that despite the many trials they faced on their travels, they were never alone; and he and Sorey remained the same people in their hearts. Be it exploring ruins or what was weighning down on his mind, thanks to growing up together, Mikleo was usually able to tell what was going on in Sorey´s head as if reading a well studied history tome. But, if truth be told, the knowledge that it worked the other way around, too, did annoy him to a certain extend. Though he´d bite his tounge before admitting that in front of Sorey. The other had enough ammunition to tease him with already and he was not about to help him gain more on him, thank you very much. Especially when–

He was startled out of his musing when the wagon was lifted a good distance into the air with a sudden surge. It came crashing back down onto the ground a moment later with a loud rattle. Mikleo jumped in his place, alarmed, his eyes darting around as he tried to spot the source of what just happened. He couldn´t find anything that would have served as an explanation at first, but when the wagon moved along a couple of meters, Mikleo´s sight caught on an unusually large rock just by the side of the road. For a moment he thought it might have been Edna´s doing but had to withdraw his accusation as he noticed it had not been created by a seraphic arte. It seemed Leif had thought the rock safe enough to drive over and not anticipated to be rattled through by the shock.

Man, no wonder they got stuck in that slope before, Mikleo thought grumpily.

He heared a soft murmur. Turning his attention to the girl in front of him, Mikleo had actually expected Rose to be awake, her daggers drawn in an instant at the sudden ruckus, but the usually so stealthy and ready to act assassin was still cold out, a goofy and content smile on her lips. The young water seraph had the urge to face palm but his feelings on this were just too mixed to make up his mind. Was she just so out of it that she didn´t notice or could it be that–

Before he got around to finishing his thought, he was interrupted as his ears picked up on a small, almost inaudible thud next to him, followed by the feeling of a heavy weight pressing into his side. Mikleo turned his head to look down his right shoulder, already fairly certain what awaited him.

And sure enough. Although he hadn´t woken up from the commotion either, Sorey´s body had tilted to the side and, balance lost, dropped onto him, his head bumping against the seraph´s shoulder. Since they were little they stayed up late reading book after book until they literarily dropped asleep, be it at home or in the ruins they wandered around in. Even now, it wasn´t like they were walking around carrying blankets and pillows, so they made due with what they had. So it wasn´t like this was the first time he had fallen asleep leaning on him like that. His childhood friend simply happened to be a klutz like that. And just like all those times before, all he had to do to fix it was reach over and put his friend into a proper sitting position. If Maggy or Leif were to turn around now, they´d see Sorey sleep in a pretty... odd position, after all. And at first, it had been Mikleo´s intention to do just that.

At first. Yet, here he was merely sitting there, frozen in place. It was like all noise around him had suddenly ceased existens as he watched his friend´s shoulders rise and fall with even breaths.

It wasn´t like he minded, really. Just, lately, things that used to be so natural to him until now, seemed... different somehow, outlandish even, and he couldn´t even tell why. He didn´t remember when he first noticed, but Mikleo was aware of something being off for quite some time now. Even though they were the same age, Mikleo had grown up to be the more composed and rational of the pair, so it frustrated him all the more when he couldn´t figure out how it had come to this. In the past, if there was a riddle that needed solving, he could think it through, no matter how long it took. He could search for the answers in books and scrolls who were always ready to help with their insights. But usually, two heads were better than one, so unless they had a competition going, he had Sorey to talk to about a solution. This time, though, he was utterly on his own with a problem he had no clue how to go about.

Mikleo was no fool. He knew full well that life meant change, and change was mostly inevitable. But, somehow, Mikleo had believed that the friendship between him and Sorey was one of those few, rare exceptions. Had he been in a different state of mind, he might´ve had the spare thought to feel embarrased at his naivity. Mikleo was a very observant person, so knowing Sorey like the back of his hand the water seraph found himself puzzled at all the small, really trivial things he came to realize, as if they´d shown themselves but a little while ago. For instance, how many of Sorey´s habits Mikleo was so used to suddenly seemed so familiar yet managed to catch him off guard even though he´d anticipated them all along. Be it when they were walking through ruins theorizing, a town to gather information or just sit somewhere reading a book, they were all situations that had occurred time and again on their travels together but for some reason, Mikleo couldn´t help but feel like there was something different about it, about them, although things should mostly have stayed the same. It was the small things that happened along the way that had him wondering. Take for instance his predicament at hand. He had no way of telling how many times he´d merely reached over in the past when Sorey´d slumped onto him and just pushed him to the other side, there was nothing much to think about. But now, he´d come to find himself hesitating to even reach out his hand and pat the other on the back at times.

In the beginning Mikleo thought it was simply his mind playing tricks on him and tried to shake it off. Sorey hadn´t shown any sign of noticing anything being different between them either, so he hadn´t paid much heed to those little discoveries and left them as they were. However, among all those trivialities, there was the one change Mikleo had not been able to deal with quite as efficiently.

He closed his eyes for a second, letting out a deep sigh, breath rustling trough Sorey´s hair as he tried to will all those unwanted thoughts and emotions that swarmed his mind back into submission. The pounding of his racing heart was more than enough to deal with.

His face heated up as if he had gotten too close to one of Lailah´s fire artes when he noticed how he´d been staring down at Sorey without intending to. But he didn´t turn away. Contrary to Sorey, he was easier to pick up on such things but never in his wildest dreams would he have thought that of all things he would fall in love with Sorey. No matter how many times he mulled over it or tried to find a different explanation, it was always the same conclussion Mikleo came to in the end.

He crossed his arms with a heavy sigh. He made sure he didn´t move too much so he wouldn´t accidentally wake the other now. Sometimes Mikleo was gratefull of how oblivious Sorey could be. Because, although Mikleo– dispite his efforts– had had a hunch about what it was that changed for far longer than he ever cared to admit, the young seraph didn´t have any intention to share it with the other. Mikleo had long since decided to stay ignorant to his own feelings and was of no mind to reconsider now.

Say if he told Sorey how he felt – given he´d be lucky enough to manage up the courage and find a good moment to do so – what would happen to them? All their lives, he and Sorey had been best friends and rival scholars. They were always together since they were little kids; it didn´t matter if it was going out to hunt with the others in the boars woods, exploring the Mt. Mabinogio ruins or reading books in gramps´ library; they were inseperable.

But if Sorey knew he thought of him as more than a friend and family, would Sorey accept it? Could he? Would he be angry at him for suddenly feeling this way? Would he be too shocked to give him a proper answer? He knew Sorey was too kind hearted to ever hold something like this against him but he also knew Sorey would beat himself up if Mikleo should end up hurt over it. To Mikleo, his friendship with Sorey was too important to risk because he didn´t give things enough thought. But most of all, he didn´t want to hurt Sorey.

Another possibility kept bugging Mikleo. If he only thought Sorey was oblivious and yet, the other knew how he felt all along and simply decided not to say anything for the same reasons? They could usually tell when something was bugging the other, so the idea wasn´t far fetched... And yet so unlikely. Mikleo almost snorted at the idea. Now that was his brain grasping for straws to reason with itself. If the other knew about it Mikleo would have noticed long ago. Compared to him, Sorey had a hard time keeping things a secret.

But that didn´t change the situation. Although Mikleo had tried his best, he was barely able to stay unconcious to this feeling much longer.

His mind was finally eased a little after thinking more and more about the same things he´d been worrying over for weeks now. He noticed how his fingertips had started digging into his arms. Looking down at them, he released them from his iron grip and rested them lightly atop each other now. He´d thought about this so many times now that he had no idea what to think anymore. But continuously listing all his worries had so far been the only way to keep him from talking to Sorey. He knew no amount of pondering the same things would change that he was still hung up on them. It would only draw out the inevitable that much longer. Now they fought and travelled alongside their friends day after day, trying to struggle against odds they couldn´t have imagined before in their wildest dreams, but here they were.

"But here we are...", he mumbled to himself. Not entirely sure if he should, he looked back down at Sorey anyways. Eyes firmly shut, he still showed no intention of waking up. Though, he didn´t mind. A break was rare enough to come by and like this, he could at least avoid Sorey seeing him red faced like that. Like this, he could look at him sleep and did not need to be cautious to make sure his true feelings wouldn´t show. There was no need to fight his blush or the small smile tugging at his lips. Now, there was something he´d really rather avoid having to explain. Relaxing against the weight against his, Mikleo closed his eyes, feeling at ease at last. So what if the two merchants turned around and found Sorey sleeping in an odd position? Seraphim existed. He was living proof of that and they might as well start acknowledging it.

A yawn finally escaped him and suddenly there was a new thought that started to form in his mind. For now they were fighting and struggling alongside their friends and each other. But maybe one day, when they found their answer and the battles ahead were fought, Mikleo might reconsider. Perhaps when all this was over, he could see past the worries and fears and be honest with Sorey and tell him how he felt. But that was for him to think of another day. For the time being, he´d listen to the soft rattling of the carriage, the whispers of a warm breeze, the even breaths next to him and the pounding of his heart lulling him to sleep.

A/N: First off, thank you to everyone who has read this story to its end! It means a lot to me. And I so hope I was in character enough. Then some, I guess, editorial (?) notes. I know, some might have been confused why I had Lailah add -san to everyone´s name. I played the game in Japanese and hence I´m just used to it; also, seeing as she´s always so formal it felt right and translating it into the equivalent of "Mister", "Misses" felt odd as well not adding it alltogether. As too why I worte in the beginning "Please shoot me...". Well, first off all, I actually try not to ship Sorey and Mikleo. So this is actually one out of the only two stories I ever plan on writing about them in a romantic setting. Call me a hypocrite if you want but I actually like their dynamic as is. Last but not least, I think I owe a massive apology to everyone who´s played through the game. I´m so sorry! Again, that´s why "Please shoot me...", too. Alright, that was enough babbling from me! I hope you guys enjoyed reading and if you have any critique or thoughts on this or my writing in general, point out mistakes, feel free to tell me. Much appreciated! HikariShiroiMidori